Can I Reduce The Sugar In The Chocolate Guinness Cake?

Our answer

Nigella's Chocolate Guinness Cake (from FEAST) is a damp, rich cake that's easy to make as the ingredients are stirred together in a saucepan. The cake is topped with a cream cheese frosting that could be omitted if really necessary, as the cake on its own is also delicious.

Unfortunately we can't recommend reducing the sugar in the cake batter as it is important for the structure and moistness of the cake. It also helps to stop the cake from drying out (sugar is hygroscopic, so it attracts water). In addition, both Guinness and cocoa have bitter notes and if you reduce the sugar in the cake then the overall taste will change. It is also worth bearing in mind that it is a very large cake and serves at least 12 people, hence the total ingredients quantities may look higher than for a regular sponge cake serving 8 people.